U.S. patent number 10,976,635 [Application Number 16/214,927] was granted by the patent office on 2021-04-13 for electronic paper display apparatus and production method and driving method thereof.
This patent grant is currently assigned to BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO., LTD., CHENGDU BOE OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD. The grantee listed for this patent is BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd., Chengdu BOE Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Wenchu Han, Fucheng Yang, Jingang Zhang, Zihe Zhang.
United States Patent |
10,976,635 |
Zhang , et al. |
April 13, 2021 |
Electronic paper display apparatus and production method and
driving method thereof
Abstract
There is provided an electronic paper display apparatus and a
production method and a driving method thereof. The electronic
paper display apparatus has: a first electrode layer and a
thin-film transistor array layer, which are opposite; an electronic
paper ink layer, which is between the first electrode layer and the
thin-film transistor array layer; and a second electrode layer,
which is on a side of the thin-film transistor array layer away
from the electronic paper ink layer and is configured to be capable
of forming an electric field for removing an image of the
electronic paper ink layer or resetting the electronic paper ink
layer together with the first electrode layer.
Inventors: |
Zhang; Jingang (Beijing,
CN), Yang; Fucheng (Beijing, CN), Han;
Wenchu (Beijing, CN), Zhang; Zihe (Beijing,
CN) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd.
Chengdu BOE Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. |
Beijing
Chengdu |
N/A
N/A |
CN
CN |
|
|
Assignee: |
BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO., LTD.
(Beijing, CN)
CHENGDU BOE OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD (Chengdu,
CN)
|
Family
ID: |
1000005485386 |
Appl.
No.: |
16/214,927 |
Filed: |
December 10, 2018 |
Prior Publication Data
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Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
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US 20190285962 A1 |
Sep 19, 2019 |
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Foreign Application Priority Data
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Mar 14, 2018 [CN] |
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201810211666.X |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G02F
1/1676 (20190101); G02F 1/167 (20130101); G09G
3/3446 (20130101); G09G 3/344 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G09G
3/34 (20060101); G02F 1/1676 (20190101); G02F
1/167 (20190101) |
Field of
Search: |
;345/107 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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1257428 |
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May 2006 |
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CN |
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102141712 |
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Aug 2011 |
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CN |
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102141854 |
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Aug 2011 |
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CN |
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102654713 |
|
Sep 2012 |
|
CN |
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2017013973 |
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Jan 2017 |
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WO |
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Other References
First Office Action, including Search Report, for Chinese Patent
Application No. 201810211666.X, dated Aug. 5, 2020, 17 pages. cited
by applicant.
|
Primary Examiner: Mandeville; Jason M
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Westman, Champlin & Koehler,
P.A.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. An electronic paper display apparatus, comprising: a first
electrode layer and a thin-film transistor array layer, which are
opposite; an electronic paper ink layer, which is between the first
electrode layer and the thin-film transistor array layer; and a
second electrode layer, which is on a side of the thin-film
transistor array layer away from the electronic paper ink layer and
is configured to be capable of forming an electric field for
removing an image of the electronic paper ink layer or resetting
the electronic paper ink layer together with the first electrode
layer, wherein the second electrode layer and the first electrode
layer are insulated from each other, an insulating layer, which is
between the second electrode layer and the thin-film transistor
array layer, wherein the first electrode layer is electrically
connected to a first conductive wire in the thin-film transistor
array layer via a first electrode layer connection point, and
wherein the second electrode layer is electrically connected to a
second conductive wire in the thin-film transistor array layer via
a second electrode layer connection point in the insulating
layer.
2. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the insulating layer has a thickness of 200 nm to 400
nm.
3. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the insulating layer comprises silicon nitride, silicon
oxide, or a mixture thereof.
4. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the second electrode layer connection point has a diameter
of 50 pm to 200 pm.
5. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the first electrode layer connection point comprises a
gold-bead-containing silica gel or silver paste point.
6. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the first electrode layer connection point has a diameter
of 0.1 mm to 2 mm.
7. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 1,
further comprising: a drive circuit unit, wherein the drive circuit
unit is electrically connected to the first electrode layer via the
first conductive wire in the thin-film transistor array layer, is
electrically connected to the second electrode layer via the second
conductive wire in the thin-film transistor array layer, and is
electrically connected to a thin-film transistor array in the
thin-film transistor array layer via a third conductive wire in the
thin-film transistor array layer.
8. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the second electrode layer comprises a conductive metal
oxide, a metal, or a mixture thereof.
9. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 8,
wherein the conductive metal oxide is selected from: indium oxide,
tin oxide, indium tin oxide, indium zinc oxide, or a mixture of any
two or more thereof.
10. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 9,
wherein the metal is selected from: molybdenum, aluminum, silver,
copper, or an alloy or a mixture of any two or more thereof.
11. The electronic paper display apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the second electrode layer has a thickness of 40 nm to 200
nm.
12. A method for producing the electronic paper display apparatus
according to claim 1, comprising the steps of: forming the second
electrode layer; forming the thin-film transistor array layer on
the second electrode layer; forming the electronic paper ink layer
on the thin-film transistor array layer; and forming the first
electrode layer on the electronic paper ink layer.
13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising: forming
the insulating layer on the second electrode layer and forming the
second electrode layer connection point in the insulating layer,
after forming the second electrode layer and before forming the
thin-film transistor array layer on the second electrode layer,
wherein the second electrode layer is electrically connected to the
second conductive wire in the thin-film transistor array layer via
the second electrode layer connection point.
14. A method for driving the electronic paper display apparatus
according to claim 1, wherein the electric field is formed by
applying a first voltage to the first electrode layer and a second
voltage to the second electrode layer to remove an image of the
electronic paper ink layer or reset the electronic paper ink
layer.
15. The method according to claim 14, comprising the steps of: an
image removing step, which comprises applying a negative voltage to
the first electrode layer and applying a positive voltage to the
second electrode layer.
16. The method according to claim 14, comprising: a resetting step,
which comprises: a resetting sub-step of applying a positive
voltage to the first electrode layer and applying a negative
voltage to the second electrode layer; and a removing sub-step of
applying a negative voltage to the first electrode layer and
applying a positive voltage to the second electrode layer.
17. The method according to claim 16, wherein alternately repeating
the resetting sub-step and the removing sub-step several times.
18. The method according to claim 14, comprising: an image
displaying step, which comprises: applying a voltage to a pixel
electrode via a thin-film transistor array in the thin-film
transistor array layer to display an image, wherein no voltage is
applied to the second electrode layer.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This disclosure claims the priority of Chinese Patent Application
No. 201810211666.X filed on Mar. 14, 2018, which is incorporated
herein by reference in its entirety.
TECHNICAL FIELD
This disclosure relates to the field of display. Specifically, this
disclosure relates to an electronic paper display apparatus and a
production method and a driving method thereof.
BACKGROUND ART
In an electronic paper display, electrically charged stained
particles are evenly dispersed into a medium solution having a
certain viscosity, and electrically charged particulates are
subjected to electrophoretic movement by an electric field to
generate color display. Since color is displayed by the reflection
of external light by colored particles, the display has the effect
of normal paper and is well received by readers. Furthermore, since
the electronic paper has a bistability effect, contents may be
displayed even if power is off. Compared to other types of display
devices, it has the significant capacity of power saving. Now,
electronic paper display apparatuses have been widely used in
fields of electronic readers and wireless electronic labels due to
advantages described above. Light, thin, and well-displaying
electronic paper display devices are desired by consumers.
However, the display refresh time of conventional electronic paper
display devices, particularly electronic paper modules used in the
field of electronic shelf labels (ESLs) is usually more than ten
seconds, reducing the experience of use. Furthermore, energy
consumption of display of electronic paper modules are always
required to be reduced by terminal manufacturers to facilitate the
elongation of service lives of cells.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, it is desirable to provide an electronic paper display
apparatus and a production method and a driving method thereof,
which may reduce refresh time of display images and/or may reduce
energy consumption.
In one aspect, this disclosure provides an electronic paper display
apparatus, comprising:
a first electrode layer and a thin-film transistor array layer,
which are opposite;
an electronic paper ink layer, which is between the first electrode
layer and the thin-film transistor array layer; and
a second electrode layer, which is on a side of the thin-film
transistor array layer away from the electronic paper ink layer and
is configured to be capable of forming an electric field for
removing an image of the electronic paper ink layer or resetting
the electronic paper ink layer together with the first electrode
layer.
According to one embodiment of this disclosure, the electronic
paper display apparatus further comprises:
an insulating layer, which is between the second electrode layer
and the thin-film transistor array layer, wherein the second
electrode layer wire is electrically connected to a second
conductive wire in the thin-film transistor array layer via a
second electrode layer connection point in the insulating layer.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the insulating
layer has a thickness of 200 nm to 400 nm.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the insulating
layer comprises silicon nitride, silicon oxide, or a mixture
thereof.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the second
electrode layer connection point has a diameter of 50 .mu.m to 200
.mu.m.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the first
electrode layer is electrically connected to a first conductive
wire in the thin-film transistor array layer via a first electrode
layer connection point.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the first
electrode layer connection point comprises a gold-bead-containing
silica gel or silver paste point.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the first
electrode layer connection point has a diameter of 0.1 mm to 2
mm.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the electronic
paper display apparatus further comprises: a drive circuit unit,
wherein the drive circuit unit is electrically connected to the
first electrode layer via a first conductive wire in the thin-film
transistor array layer, is electrically connected to the second
electrode layer via a second conductive wire in the thin-film
transistor array layer, and is electrically connected to a
thin-film transistor array in the thin-film transistor array layer
via a third conductive wire in the thin-film transistor array
layer.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the second
electrode layer comprises a conductive metal oxide, a metal, or a
mixture thereof.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the conductive
metal oxide is selected from: indium oxide, tin oxide, indium tin
oxide, indium zinc oxide, or a mixture of any two or more
thereof.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the metal is
selected from: molybdenum, aluminum, silver, copper, or an alloy or
a mixture of any two or more thereof.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the second
electrode layer has a thickness of 40 nm to 200 nm.
In another aspect of this disclosure, there is provided a method
for producing the electronic paper display apparatus of any one
described above, comprising the steps of:
forming a second electrode layer;
forming a thin-film transistor array layer on the second electrode
layer;
forming an electronic paper ink layer on the thin-film transistor
array layer; and
forming a first electrode layer on the electronic paper ink
layer.
According to one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further
comprises:
forming an insulating layer on the second electrode layer and
forming a second electrode layer connection point in the insulating
layer, after forming the second electrode layer and before forming
the thin-film transistor array layer on the second electrode layer,
wherein the second electrode layer is electrically connected to a
second conductive wire in the thin-film transistor array layer via
the second electrode layer connection point.
In another aspect of this disclosure, there is provided a method
for driving the electronic paper display apparatus of any one
described above, wherein an electric field is formed by applying a
voltage to the first electrode layer and the second electrode layer
to remove an image of the electronic paper ink layer or reset the
electronic paper ink layer.
According to one embodiment of this disclosure, the method
comprises the steps of:
an image removing step, which comprises applying a negative voltage
to the first electrode layer and applying a positive voltage to the
second electrode layer.
According to one embodiment of this disclosure, the method
comprises:
a resetting step, which comprises: a resetting sub-step of applying
a positive voltage to the first electrode layer and applying a
negative voltage to the second electrode layer; and a removing
sub-step of applying a negative voltage to the first electrode
layer and applying a positive voltage to the second electrode
layer.
According to one embodiment of this disclosure, the resetting
sub-step and the removing sub-step are alternately repeated several
times.
According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the method
comprises:
an image displaying step, which comprises: applying a voltage to a
pixel electrode via a thin-film transistor array in the thin-film
transistor array layer to display an image,
wherein no voltage is applied to the second electrode layer.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
In order to illustrate the technical solutions in examples of this
disclosure more clearly, figures required for describing the
examples will be simply introduced below. It is apparent that the
figures described below are merely exemplary examples of this
disclosure, and other figures may be further obtained by those of
ordinary skill in the art according to these figures without
exerting inventive work.
FIG. 1 is a structural schematic diagram exemplarily illustrating
an electronic paper display apparatus according to one embodiment
of this disclosure.
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram exemplarily illustrating a method for
producing an electronic paper display apparatus according to one
embodiment of this disclosure.
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram exemplarily illustrating a driving
method for driving an electronic paper display apparatus according
to one embodiment of this disclosure.
FIG. 4 is a schematic voltage diagram exemplarily illustrating a
first electrode layer and a second electrode layer when the driving
method as shown in FIG. 3 is implemented.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
The technical solutions in the examples of this disclosure will be
described clearly and fully below in conjunction with specific
embodiments of this disclosure. Obviously, the embodiments and/or
examples described are merely a part of the embodiments and/or
examples of this disclosure, rather than all of the embodiments
and/or examples. Based on the embodiments and/or examples of this
disclosure, all other embodiments and/or examples obtained by those
of ordinary skill in the art without performing inventive work
belong to the scope protected by this disclosure.
In this disclosure, the layer and the film may be interchangeably
used, unless specifically indicated. In this disclosure, all
characteristics of numeric values mean to be within an error range
of measurement, for example within .+-.10%, within .+-.5%, or
within .+-.1% of a defined numeric value. Terms "first", "second",
"third", and the like are for the purpose of description only, and
cannot be understood as indicating or suggesting relative
importance or implying the number of technical features indicated.
Thereby, a characteristic defined by "first", "second", "third",
and the like may expressly or impliedly comprises one or more
characteristics.
In one aspect of this disclosure, there may be provided an
electronic paper display apparatus, comprising:
a first electrode layer and a thin-film transistor array layer,
which are oppositely provided;
an electronic paper ink layer, which is provided between the first
electrode layer and the thin-film transistor array layer; and
a second electrode layer, which is provided on a side of the
thin-film transistor array layer away from the electronic paper ink
layer.
The second electrode layer is configured to be capable of forming
an electric field for removing an image of the electronic paper ink
layer or resetting the electronic paper ink layer together with the
first electrode layer. That is, by loading suitable voltages on the
first electrode layer and the second electrode layer, an electric
field is formed in the electronic paper ink layer to remove an
image therein or reset the electronic paper ink layer.
FIG. 1 is a structural schematic diagram exemplarily illustrating
an electronic paper display apparatus according to one embodiment
of this disclosure.
As shown in FIG. 1, an electronic paper display apparatus according
to one embodiment of this disclosure may comprise: a substrate 10
such as glass substrate or a polyethylene terephthalate substrate,
a second electrode layer 20 provided on the substrate 10, an
insulating layer 30 provided on the second electrode layer 20, a
thin-film transistor array layer 50 provided on the insulating
layer 30, an electronic paper ink layer 70 provided on the
thin-film transistor array layer 50, and a first electrode layer 80
provided on the electronic paper ink layer 70.
The electronic paper display apparatus may further comprise a first
protective film layer 110 provided on the first electrode layer
80.
Optionally, a second encapsulation protective film layer 60 may be
provided between the thin-film transistor array layer 50 and the
electronic paper ink layer 70. The second encapsulation protective
film layer 60 may be transparent or opaque to improve the contrast
of image display.
The electronic paper ink layer 70 may comprise a plurality of
microcapsules. Each of the microcapsule may comprise a fluid and a
plurality of electrically charged particles located in this fluid.
A plurality of microcapsule may correspond to one screen pixel.
The thin-film transistor array layer 50 comprises a first zone on
which the electronic paper ink layer 70 is provided and a second
zone located on a side of the first zone. A first electrode layer
connection point 100 is provided on the second zone. As shown in
FIG. 1, the second encapsulation protective film layer 60 and the
electronic paper ink layer 70 have the same area in the horizontal
directions. In FIG. 1, the first electrode layer connection point
100 is provided at the right side of the second encapsulation
protective film layer 60 and the electronic paper ink layer 70.
However, this disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, it
may be provided at the left side of the second encapsulation
protective film layer 60 and the electronic paper ink layer 70. A
drive circuit unit 120, which controls the directions of the
electric fields between the thin-film transistor array layer 50 and
the first electrode layer 80 and between the second electrode layer
20 and the first electrode layer 80 to control the distribution of
electrically charged particles, is provided in the second zone of
the thin-film transistor array layer 50.
A first electrode layer connection point 100, which allows the
first electrode layer 80 to be electrically connected to a first
conductive wire in the thin-film transistor array layer 50, is
further provided between the first electrode layer 80 and the
thin-film transistor array layer 50. The drive circuit unit 120
drives and controls the first electrode layer 80 via the first
conductive wire.
The second electrode layer 20 may be electrically connected to a
second conductive wire in the thin-film transistor array layer 50
via a second electrode layer connection point 40 in an insulating
layer 30. The drive circuit unit 120 may drive and control the
second electrode layer 20 via the second conductive wire.
In this embodiment, it is to be noted that the first conductive
wire and the second conductive wire are in the thin-film transistor
array layer. However, they are independent from a thin-film
transistor array. They are provided in the thin-film transistor
array layer mainly in consideration of simple production and
convenient wire leading. The first electrode layer and the second
electrode layer may also be connected to a voltage source and a
control circuit via other circuits. This is not limited in this
disclosure.
The thin-film transistor array layer 50 comprises a thin-film
transistor array. The thin-film transistor array is electrically
connected to a third conductive wire in the thin-film transistor
array layer 50. The drive circuit unit 120 may drive and control
the thin-film transistor array via the third conductive wire.
The first conductive wire, the second conductive wire, and the
third conductive wire may be formed together with any of the source
electrode, the gate electrode, and the drain electrode in the
thin-film transistor array from the same material (for example, a
metal, a conductive metal oxide) so as to simplify the process.
The drive circuit unit 120 may be connected to a control circuit
board via a flexible wiring board 130. The drive circuit unit 120
may be a drive integrated circuit element (IC).
Under the control of the control circuit board, the drive circuit
unit 120 controls and changes the directions of the electric fields
between the thin-film transistor array layer 50 and the first
electrode layer 80 and between the second electrode layer 20 and
the first electrode layer 80 to control the distribution of the
electrically charged particles so as to display images.
According to some examples, the first electrode layer 80 may be
formed from a transparent conductive oxide material. The
transparent conductive metal oxide may be selected from: indium
oxide, tin oxide, indium tin oxide (ITO), indium zinc oxide, or a
mixture of any two or more thereof. For example, the first
electrode layer 80 may be an ITO layer.
According to some examples, the first electrode layer connection
point 100 may comprise a gold-bead-containing silica gel or silver
paste point. The first electrode layer connection point 100 may
have a diameter of 0.1 mm to 2 mm.
According to some examples, the second electrode layer 20 may
comprise a conductive metal oxide, a metal, or a mixture thereof.
The conductive metal oxide may be selected from: indium oxide, tin
oxide, indium tin oxide, indium zinc oxide, or a mixture of any two
or more thereof. The metal may be selected from: molybdenum,
aluminum, silver, copper, or an alloy or a mixture of any two or
more thereof. The second electrode layer 20 may have a thickness of
40 nm to 200 nm.
According to some examples, the insulating layer 30 may have a
thickness of 200 nm to 400 nm. The insulating layer 30 may comprise
silicon nitride, silicon oxide, or a mixture thereof.
According to some examples, the second electrode layer connection
point 40 may have a diameter of 50 .mu.m to 200 .mu.m. The second
electrode layer connection point 40 may be produced together with
the first conductive wire, the second conductive wire, and the
third conductive wire from the same material, for example a metal
or a conductive metal oxide, such as ITO.
The electronic paper display apparatus may further comprise: a
sealant 90 provided around the electronic paper ink layer 70. The
sealant 90 is provided between the thin-film transistor array layer
50 and the first protective film layer 110. The provision of the
sealant 90 has a protective effect of water resistance and moisture
resistance on the electronic paper ink layer 70.
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram exemplarily illustrating a method for
producing an electronic paper display apparatus according to one
embodiment of this disclosure.
As shown in FIG. 2, a method for producing the electronic paper
display apparatus of any one described above comprises the steps
of:
S210: forming a second electrode layer;
S220: forming a thin-film transistor array layer on the second
electrode layer;
S230: forming an electronic paper ink layer on the thin-film
transistor array layer; and
S240: forming a first electrode layer on the electronic paper ink
layer.
The method may further comprise: forming an insulating layer on the
second electrode layer and forming a second electrode layer
connection point in the insulating layer, after forming the second
electrode layer and before forming the thin-film transistor array
layer on the second electrode layer, wherein the second electrode
layer is electrically connected to a second conductive wire in the
thin-film transistor array layer via the second electrode layer
connection point.
According to a specific embodiment of this disclosure, in the
method for producing the electronic paper display apparatus, a
substrate 10 such as glass substrate or a polyethylene
terephthalate substrate is provided. A second electrode layer 20,
for example an ITO layer having a thickness of 100 nm, is formed on
the substrate 10, for example by sputtering (S210). An insulating
layer 30, for example a silicon oxide layer having a thickness of
300 nm, is formed on the second electrode layer 20 by CVD
film-coating; and a through hole, for example a through hole having
a diameter of 100 .mu.m, is formed in the insulating layer 30.
A thin-film transistor array layer 50 is formed on the insulating
layer 30 (S220). The thin-film transistor array layer 50 comprises
a thin-film transistor array, a first conductive wire, a second
conductive wire, and a third conductive wire. At the same time of
forming the second conductive wire, a second electrode layer
connection point 40 is formed in the through hole of the insulating
layer 30 from a material, which is the same as that of the second
conductive wire, such as silver, so that the second electrode layer
connection point 40 is electrically connected to the second
conductive wire and the second electrode layer 20. The second
electrode layer connection point 40 is a connection point having a
diameter of 100 .mu.m and a thickness of 300 nm.
An electronic paper film containing an electronic paper ink layer
70 is attached onto a first zone on the thin-film transistor array
layer 50 (S230).
A first electrode layer connection point 100, such as a silver
paste point having a diameter of 0.5 mm, is produced on a side of
the electronic paper film (i.e., on a second zone on a side of the
first zone of the thin-film transistor array layer 50).
A first electrode layer 80 such as a first ITO electrode layer is
formed on the electronic paper film (S240), and the first electrode
layer 80 is electrically connected to the first electrode layer
connection point 100.
A drive circuit unit 120 is bound in the second zone of the
thin-film transistor array layer 50, so that the circuit unit is
electrically connected to the first electrode layer 80 via the
first conductive wire, electrically connected to the second
electrode layer 20 via the second conductive wire, and electrically
connected to the thin-film transistor array via the third
conductive wire.
A flexible wiring board 130 is bound, wherein the drive circuit
unit 120 may be connected to a control circuit board via the
flexible wiring board 130.
A sealant 90 is applied around the electronic paper ink layer
70.
Optionally, the method for producing the electronic paper display
apparatus of any one described above may further comprise a step of
providing a first protective film layer 110 on the first electrode
layer 80.
Optionally, the method for producing the electronic paper display
apparatus of any one described above may further comprise a step of
providing a second encapsulation protective film layer 60 between
the thin-film transistor array layer 50 and the electronic paper
ink layer 70.
In still another aspect of this disclosure, there may be provided a
method for driving the electronic paper display apparatus of any
one described above, wherein an electric field is formed by
applying voltages to the first electrode layer and the second
electrode layer to remove an image of the electronic paper ink
layer or reset the electronic paper ink layer.
The driving method may comprise an image removing step, a resetting
step, and an image displaying step, which are circulated in this
order, to display different images in the electronic paper ink
layer.
The driving method of this disclosure will be described by an
example below. However, the method of this disclosure is not
limited thereto. For example, positive and negative voltages of
electrodes may be appropriately adjusted according to various
properties of electronic paper inks.
In one example, the method comprises the steps of:
an image removing step, which comprises applying a negative voltage
to the first electrode layer and applying a positive voltage to the
second electrode layer. At this time, voltage may not be applied to
a pixel electrode by the thin-film transistor array.
Further, the method may further comprise:
a resetting step after the image removing step, wherein the
resetting step comprises: a resetting sub-step of applying a
positive voltage to the first electrode layer and applying a
negative voltage to the second electrode layer; and a removing
sub-step of applying a negative voltage to the first electrode
layer and applying a positive voltage to the second electrode
layer. At this time, voltage may not be applied to a pixel
electrode by the thin-film transistor array.
That is, image removing and image resetting may be subjected to the
electronic paper ink layer by the second electrode layer rather
than each separate pixel electrode. This may greatly improve
refresh speed and performance.
Further, the method may further comprise:
an image displaying step after the resetting step, wherein the
image displaying step comprises: applying a voltage to the first
electrode layer and outputting the voltage to the electronic paper
ink layer by the drive circuit unit, wherein the second electrode
layer is hanged up. Voltage changes of the thin-film transistor
array and the first electrode layer are controlled by respective
output channels of the drive circuit unit to allow the electronic
paper ink layer to display corresponding images. In other words, a
voltage is applied to a pixel electrode via a thin-film transistor
array in the thin-film transistor array layer to display an image,
wherein no voltage is applied to the second electrode layer.
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram exemplarily illustrating a driving
method for driving an electronic paper display apparatus according
to one embodiment of this disclosure.
As shown in FIG. 3, the driving method for driving the electronic
paper display apparatus according to one embodiment of this
disclosure may sequentially comprise the steps of:
step S310, i.e., an image removing step, which comprises applying a
negative voltage to the first electrode layer and applying a
positive voltage to the second electrode layer;
step S320, i.e., a resetting step, which comprises: a resetting
sub-step of applying a positive voltage to the first electrode
layer and applying a negative voltage to the second electrode
layer; and a removing sub-step of applying a negative voltage to
the first electrode layer and applying a positive voltage to the
second electrode layer; and
step 330, i.e., an image displaying step, which comprises: applying
a voltage to the first electrode layer and outputting a voltage to
the electronic paper ink layer by the drive circuit unit, wherein
the second electrode layer is hanged up. Voltage changes of the
thin-film transistor array and the first electrode layer are
controlled by the drive circuit unit to allow the electronic paper
ink layer to display corresponding images.
The resetting sub-step and the removing sub-step may be each
performed once, or may be alternately performed n times, wherein n
is 2 to 10, for example 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10.
In the image removing step S310 and/or the resetting step S320,
simultaneous entire-face driving is performed by using the first
electrode layer and the second electrode layer. At this time, the
power output of the drive circuit unit is hanged up and does not
work. In the image displaying step S330, it is switched to output
signals to a screen pixel by a drive output unit of the drive
circuit unit, to allow the second electrode layer to be hanged up
and to not work. That is, it is switched to a normal driving
mode.
FIG. 4 is a schematic voltage diagram exemplarily illustrating a
first electrode layer and a second electrode layer when the driving
method as shown in FIG. 3 is implemented.
As shown in FIG. 4, positive voltages applied to the first
electrode layer and the second electrode layer may be, for example
15 volts, respectively. Negative voltages applied to the first
electrode layer and the second electrode layer may be, for example
-15 volts, respectively. In the image removing step S310 and the
resetting step S320, the drive circuit unit is in a high-resistance
state. In the image displaying step S330, the second electrode
layer is in a high-resistance state.
The resetting step may be performed once, or may be performed n
times, wherein n is 2 to 10, for example 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or
10.
According to this disclosure, by providing the second electrode
layer on a side of the thin-film transistor array layer away from
the electronic paper ink layer, image refresh time in display may
be reduced and energy consumption may be reduced. Specifically, the
driving of the first and second electrode layers is controlled by
the drive circuit unit, and immediate entire-face driving is
performed mainly in the image removing step and/or the resetting
step, so as to reduce image refresh time. At the meanwhile, a
higher voltage may be applied to the first and second electrodes in
the image removing step, so that electrically charged
microparticles in electronic paper ink move faster, which may allow
refresh time in display to be further reduced. At the meanwhile,
there is no need for the drive circuit unit to use large energy
consumption to perform line by line scanning driving due to
immediate entire-face driving, and therefore energy consumption
required by the display module may be reduced to some extent.
Whereas, a conventional electronic paper display apparatus uses a
line by line scanning mode in the whole stage of driving, and a
longer time is required to display a new image.
Both the first electrode layer and the second electrode layer of
the electronic paper display apparatus according to this disclosure
are connected to the drive circuit unit by using relatively large
electrical connection point (for example, a silver paste point may
be used as the first electrode layer connection point, and the
second electrode layer connection point may have a diameter of 50
.mu.m to 200 .mu.m) and relatively large metal wirings. Therefore,
higher voltages may be applied to the first electrode layer and the
second electrode layer in the image removing step and the resetting
step of driving, so that electrically charged microparticles in
electronic paper ink move faster, which may allow refresh time in
display to be further reduced.
Additionally, the second electrode layer is formed on the
substrate, for example by sputtering, and the insulating layer is
formed on the second electrode layer by CVD film-coating. The
second electrode layer connection point may be produced together
with the second conductive wire from the same material. Therefore,
with respect to the production process, the second electrode layer,
the insulating layer, the second electrode layer connection point,
and the second conductive wire will be easily produced. This is
advantageous to the improvement of yield rate, the reduction of
energy consumption, and the reduction of cost.
Obviously, various modifications and variations may be made to the
examples of this disclosure by the person skilled in the art
without deviating from the spirit and the scope of this disclosure.
Thus, if these modifications and variations of this disclosure are
within the scope of the claims of this disclosure and equivalent
techniques thereof, this disclosure also intends to encompass these
modifications and variations.
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